WELCOME TO DIYBio.to!

We are a group of Bio-Enthusiasts and everything nice!

About us

The Bio-Revolution

We are a community of bio-enthusiasts in the Toronto area who are fascinated by the miniature world of molecular biology. We are excited that biotechnology as progressed far enough for citizen scientists to do experiments outside of academia and industry, much akin to the computer revolution of the 90’s.

Our aim is to provide a space for conversation, learning, and collaboration which will ultimately lead to innovation in this burgeoning field. We hold community workshops and information sessions which are open to everybody (see our meet-up group!).

We hope to see you soon!

Lab Space

Our community lab opened mid-May 2015, in space that was generously donated by Hacklab.to. Equipment available for use is listed below as well as common reagents and supplies. We do not charge for common reagent/supply use, but members are encouraged to donate money for communal resupply. Members are welcomed to undertake their own project, though the member must supply their own special reagents or supplies.
All of the equipment and reagents was donated or purchased out-of-pocket by members. If you or someone you know has something to donate , please contact us! We accept any and all equipment; if it turns on, we’ll take it.

Equipment

All equipment is available for member’s use. If you need a special piece of equipment, or have something to donate, contact us.

Reagents

These supplies are communal. Specific reagents for a personal project would be supplied by the member, and can be acquired from several retailers online.

Safety

Ours is a Biosafety Level 1 lab, about as dangerous as a commercial kitchen. All those wishing to use the lab space will be taught proper lab conduct and etiquette to ensure safe behaviour.

Gallery

Events

Visit our Meetup Group to keep up to date on upcoming and furture evetns!

1 Open House

We have an open house every Tuesday evening from 6 pm until late, which coincides with the Hacklab.to TO open house. Come and check us out! The atmosphere is very informal, we nerds / geeks / hackers / makers get together hang out and talk. We give tours of the facilities and answer questions that anyone may have.
We hope to see you sometime!

2 Study Group

We have study group that meets the second Thursday of every month. You can see details of the event here **put in link to meet-up group**. A chapter out of Albert’s Molecular Biology of the Cell is selected as that month’s reading and we discuss it. If you haven’t read the chapter, don’t worry! Everyone is welcome to listen in and ask questions.

3 Bio-science Lectures for Science Literacy

Watch this space! Rana is currently is putting together a 3 hour lecture that will give all the foundational information for understanding the cell, it’s make-up and internal functioning. Everything you wanted to know about molecular cell biology but were afraid to ask! This will be the first in a series of lectures to give those interested enough knowledge to get started in the lab.

4 Guest Speakers

We have hosted several guest speakers in the past, ranging from professors, PhD’s and industry. The topics include human genetics, molecular gastronomy, open science and the future of biology. There is no set schedule for the speakers, join our meet-up group to receive updates!

5 Workshops

We host community workshops for people to get engaged with science and see what lab work is all about. Our past workshops were using the Violacein Factory kit and the Rainbow Factory kit from Synbiota as well as a Bioart workshop with coloured E. coli to produce pretty pictures. Join our meet-up for the next workshop.